Curative couch.



No. 771,847. PATENTED ooT.11,1904.

1. 1 w. :rrrus.

APPLIOA'I'IOI FILED JULY 31 1902 N0 MODEL.

WITNESSES! INVENTORS eye/ET:

ATTORNEY UNITED STATES Patented October 11, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN TITUS, OF OYSTER BAY, AND WILLIAM TITUS, OF OLD WE STBUBY,

NEW YORK. 7

CURATIVE COUCH.

SPECIFICATIONforming part of Letters Patent No. 771,847, dated October11, 1904.

3 Application filed Iuly 31, 1902.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that we, JOHN Trrus, a resident of Oyster Bay, and WILLIAMTrrus, residing at Old VVestbury, in the township of North Hempstead, inthe county of Nassau and State of New York, citizens of the UnitedStates, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in OurativeApparatus; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,and exact description of the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, m aking a part of this specification, in whichFigure 1 is a vertical transverse sectional view of an apparatus madeaccording to our invention, taken in the line at w of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 isa vertical longitudinal sectional view of the same, taken in the line y3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view, on a larger scale,still further illustrating certain portions of our said. invention. Fig.4 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 2 a of Fig. 3,illustrating certain other features of our said invention.

This invention comprises certain new and useful combinations ofmechanical instrumentalities whereby atmospheric air artificiallytempered by heat or cold to any desired degree may conveniently beapplied to the treatment of many and various disorders without requiringthe removal of patients from bed or couch and without disturbing themfrom recumbent positions.

For the practice of our invention there is provided a bed or couch whichmay be of any suitable construction. As shown in the drawings, itcomprises a mattress A, which is placed upon a bedstead or support B.Ordinarily there may be employed in connection with the bed A the usualblankets, coverlets, pillows, &c. For use upon the bed we provide ashell O, which is separately shown in Fig. 3. This shell, as indicatedin said figure, is of such a form that when laid upon the bed its edges(0 rest close upon the latter, with the interior of 'the shell providinga space which, except for the notch t, should be substantially closedall around against ingress or egress of atmospheric air. The shellshould be of a material which is substantially imper- Serial No.117,764. (No model.)

vious to the passage of air therethrough, and its shape and size aresuch that when disposed upon the bed as described a person may berecumbent within and under the same with the head projected outwardthrough the opening provided by the notch 6. Provided at any desiredpoint of this shell, but preferably at or near the foot thereof, asshown in Fig. 2, is a nozzle 0, to which on occasion may be attached anair-pipe D, the opposite end of which may connect in any suitable mannerwith any appropriate source of heated or of refrigerated atmosphericair. Thus, for example, the full lines in Fig. 2 show the pipe D incommunication with a hood cl over an ordinary steamradiator 0, so thatair heated by the radiator will pass through the said pipe into thespace within the shell when the latter is provided upon the bed, asabove set forth. In the same figure the dotted outline shows the mannerin which the pipe may instead be connected with a refrigerator orice-box E, so that cold air may pass from the ice-box through the pipeto the space within the shell. Air, either cold or hot air, may thus bemade to surround the patient recumbent upon the bed and within orbeneath the shell, the whole person, exclusive of the head, protrudingthrough the opening provided by the notch b, and being thus subjected tothe temperature and action of the tempered air. Whether the air shall betempered hot or cold and the degree to which it is heated or chilled, asthe case may be, of course varies with the condition of the patient orthe nature of the malady to be cured or alleviated, each case requiringattention upon its own characteristics according to the judgment of theattendant, nurse,

. or physician.

, In the use and operation of the invention it is preferred that theusual coverlets, sheets, &c., (indicated at f in Fig. 1) be employed inconnection with the apparatus described over and upon the shell, asshown in Fig. l, for, among other purposes, closing the opening providedby the notch b more closely around the neck of the patient and also tofall upon and protect the patient when the shell is withdrawn from thebed. This withdrawal of the shell is most satisfactorily accomplished bydrawing the shell longitudinally from the foot 9 of the bed, theblankets, coverlets, sheets, &c., as the case may be, falling upon andenveloping the patient as the shell is withdrawn, and thereby preventingaccess of external air to the person of the patient and preventing chillor injury to the patient by a too sudden change of temperature.

The shellCmay be of anysuitable material, such as sheet metal or thelike; but for the most convenient handling it should be as light as maybe, and for sanitary or hygenic reasons it should be capable ofbeingeasily cleansed or disinfected. To secure these advantages, the betterconstruction, so far as at present known to us, is that shown in Fig. 4.In this two frames m and n, of foraminated material, preferablywire-netting, are provided, each of the desired shape of the shell, theinner frame being somewhat smaller than the outer frame m, so as to resttherein. Interposed between the two frames is an air and water proofflexible material u, such as rubber cloth, suitably-proofed canvas,impervious paper, or the like. The two frames being brought singlytoward each other with the impervious material it between them thelatter is firmly gripped and held in place, the two frames being thenfixed together by any suitable meansas, for example, tied together bycords, wires, or the like, as indicated at w. The shell as thusconstructed is of little weight and may be readily taken apart to permitthe removal of the impervious material a and the cleansing of the framesas occasion may render desirable.

What we claim as our invention is- 1. A shell shaped for application toa bed with its edges closed upon the latter to provide within the shella space for a person to lie recumbent and composed of inner and outerforaminated frames and an impervious sheet material clasped betweenthem, as described.

2. A shell shaped for application to a bed with its edges closed uponthe latter to provide within the shell a space for a person to lierecumbent and composed of an inner and an outer frame of wire-nettingwith an impervious sheet material clasped between them, as

JAMES A. WHITNEY, Gno. R. HALL.

